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I've always dreamed of making a Tactical RPG, but I never thought I was skilled enough to do it.

A few years ago, I had a weird yet fascinating dream of an RPG where the party was formed by Superman, Batman, Venom and John Lennon.

In 2020, I decided to make both these dreams come true.


Our protagonist is Vince Heart, a pure hearted guy who is just trying to be a nice person in a world where kindness and empathy are becoming rare commodities. Vince is constantly bothered by how selfish everyone is. One day, a mysterious encounter changes him deeply, making him develop powers beyond his wildest imagination. And, as you may well know, with great power comes great responsibility. Whatever is wrong with the world, Vince believes he should do something about it.

A series of bizarre events leads him to team up with Superman, Batman and John Lennon. This unlikely team is set on a quest to save the world. But saving a world that does not want to be saved will prove to be a lonely quest.


The game alternates between cutscenes and battles.
Cutscenes play like comic book pages. Certain dialog choices give you status boosts corresponding to the choice you make. Also, some moments are played like small minigames, like tracking an enemy or trying to get a loan from friends.

Battle-wise, The Lonely League is a Tactical RPG like Fire Emblem, Shining Force and Final Fantasy Tactics. You control a small group of characters, but there is plenty of room for strategy and customization.

The main feature of the system is you are able to interact with map events, other than just attack them. Talking to enemies can have multiple effects. You can make them change their attack patterns, or in many cases get them to join your party for the duration of that battle. You can also interact with objects, activating, disabling or moving them, which can have environmental effects.

Victory is not always achieved by killing every enemy on map, and most battles will have multiple paths to victory.



Character progression is achieved by gaining experience from battles and spending them on skill trees, which unlock both stats upgrades and skills. As the game progresses, characters gain additional classes, each one with its unique skill tree. Upgrades are stacked among different classes, so characters can combine powers from different sources and players can design their own combos and strategies.




  • Tactical Battles inspired on games like Shining Force and Final Fantasy Tactics.


  • You can talk to enemies during battles and even recruit them!


  • You can also interact with objects and trigger specific events.


  • Challenging battles that will make you strategize.


  • Multiple paths to win each battle.


  • Get XP even when you lose and come back stronger!


  • Character customization - cumulative character classes and skill trees.


  • Comic book style interactive cutscenes.


  • Famous characters from comics universe (and others!).


  • A soundtrack you will recognize and love.


Latest Blog

The Lonely League is the game of the year

In RPGMaker.net's 2023 Misao Awards, The Lonely League ran for 15 out of 21 categories, and it won 14!

I can't thank enough all those who nominated and voted for the game. It really means a lot. That's the kind of thing that keeps solo hobbyist game developers like me going!



I'd like to make a brief comment on the game's relation to each of the categories it ran for.

Best Game Title
The most clever, original, witty, or cool game title of the year.
That's the only one it didn't win, but I couldn't possibly hope to compete with SWOLLEN TO BURSTING UNTIL I AM DISAPPEARING ON PURPOSE.

Best Game Profile
The raddest presentation and marketing of the game.
I love sexy game profiles. I don't feel like I'm there yet, but I want to get good at making them!

"Eye Candy" Award
Raddest Graphics & Artwork. An excellent example of art direction and cohesive vision. ie - this is pretty AF!
Even though I use a lot of "recycled" resources, graphics probably take up 80% of my dev time. I think I did a good job matching the battle map sprites with the cutscene sprites, while also maintaining the comicbook aesthetic.

Summoner of Sounds
The best soundtrack and creative use of sound.
Feels like I cheated because I use a lot of commercial music. But the price I pay for it is not being able to sell the game or even have people streaming it because of YouTube censorship. Still worth it.

Excellence in Narrative
The project you think is most effective at telling its story. Think in terms of its presentation, writing, clarity, cutscene direction, or Shyamalan twists.
This will always be the category I'm proudest of winning. I'm very careful about writing. I study a lot, I think about it a lot. I still feel like I need to improve, but it's good to know I have been able to write meaningful and engaging stories.

The "How the Hell Did They Do That?" Award
The game that shows the most innovative and creative Gameplay this year.
I've been wanting to design a tactical battle system on RPGMaker for over 20 years. It has been done, but honestly, I think this is the most fun and polished one I've ever seen.

The Dark Souls of RMN
The game that delivers the best challenges or coolest puzzles.
I wanted the game to be very tactical and challenging, and I know I made some questionable choices because most people find the game too hard. But from what I've seen people play, the satisfaction of coming up with your own strategies and winning is rewarding enough.

Punniest Game Alive
Comedic game of the year. Pick the funniest game you played this year, with the best humour and/or the best/worst puns.
In this category, I tied with The Kaiju is My Childhood Friend. I wouldn't say humor is my strongest point, but I try. ^_^

Trippiest Game
The game that was most strange, bizarre, psychedelic, offbeat, and quirky released this year.
Superman, Batman and Venom go to hell to get John Lennon so they can save humanity from alien chocolate. So, yeah.

Best Lawsuit Waiting to Happen
The best fangame made this year that might get the dev in trouble. ;p
It's not like I haven't been threatened by Marvel before.

Not Dead Yet Award
Given to the best old game that was finally finished this year.
I started the game in 2020, and the original concept is from 2009 if I'm not mistaken.

Best in Positive Diversity
The best game from this year that showed positivity towards diversity and LBGTQ+
I'm happy about this. It wasn't a major focus, and I tend to stay away from stereotyped positive depictions and descriptions of LBGTQ+ people. But I did want to have a MC with a fluid sexuality. Vince is his own thing.

Star Stealing Prince Award
The game that used the best original assets this year.
This is probably the one category for which I don't think I deserve the title. While a few assets were made from scratch, the vast majority were edits. Sometimes it took me over a week to edit a single battle sprite. But still, not sure I could call it original.

"Everlasting Journey" Award
The game that has the most content to offer.
I wanted the game to have an epic feeling, and you can't have that with short games. I guess I could also call the gamedev process an everlasting journey, for I spent over two years of my life doing nothing and neglecting everything in the name of this game.

Game of the Year
The absolute best game you played from RMN for the current year.

  • Completed
  • calunio
  • RPG Maker MV
  • Tactics RPG
  • 04/11/2021 01:03 PM
  • 02/10/2024 11:39 AM
  • 02/13/2023
  • 37982
  • 27
  • 573

Posts

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JustAShyDoge
Still a dumb and shy doggo
9731
I was told to comment here to show calunio some love.
So, here you go. HISSSSS
CashmereCat
Self-proclaimed Puzzle Snob
11638
I'm lonely! This'll be perfect for me!
OldPat
OrudoPatto, kisama!
5107
I've been following this game since the day Cal started working on it and it's amazing what is shaping up to be!
I will play this as soon as it releases!

Great work, Cal :)
And cool game page too! :P
This look so good (reminds to me of Dyhortfight 4 for the use of both charsets and fighting games sprite edits), and I am really curious to see how the story develops. The premise is really interesting.
Alright, alright. Now this presentation is pretty sexy. I have to sub this. Also, the premise made me laugh, so double points!
Daaaamnnn, lookin GOOD! I love the comic book aesthetic mixed with pixel art, it's like that sweet sweet sauce recipe.
AtiyaTheSeeker
In all fairness, bird shrapnel isn't as deadly as wood shrapnel
5424
I haven't seen a superhero game here since Masters of the Wind. And it's tactical too! I am stoked. :o
OzzyTheOne
Future Ruler of Gam Mak
4676
I've seen some snippets of this game's progress on the Discord and decided to give it a look. It looks like quite the interesting passion project! Wish you lots of success with the game Cal!
CashmereCat
Self-proclaimed Puzzle Snob
11638
Calunio has for a long time been one of my favourite RPG Maker developers of all, for their daring story concepts and impressive direction of scenes, alongside some decent pacing and unmatchable commentary on the human condition. "THERAPIST: Mind Manager" might be favourite RPG Maker game of all time, but I gotta say - this might be giving it a run for its money. It's funny that despite all of the praise I heap upon Calunio for his story and concept work and - oh how that dialogue sings! - I can never shake the fact that I've never considered Calunio to be strong at, well, gameplay. Until... now? I mean, based on the 2-3 hours of this game I've played, it's by far the most fun I've had playing a Calunio game when it comes to pure mechanics, and it's... somehow still backed up by Calunio's masterful storytelling abilities? And somehow his scene direction is more effective than ever? And this might be his LONGEST game yet? The very fact that one of the most promising RPG Maker games I can think of right now is being developed based on copyrighted characters and setting is somehow one of the most RPG Maker things I can think of. I really, really, fricking hope this game gets more players when the next demo comes out. I'd be really disappointed if it didn't, because this game absolutely. Fucks.
author=CashmereCat
Calunio has for a long time been one of my favourite RPG Maker developers of all, for their daring story concepts and impressive direction of scenes, alongside some decent pacing and unmatchable commentary on the human condition. "THERAPIST: Mind Manager" might be favourite RPG Maker game of all time, but I gotta say - this might be giving it a run for its money. It's funny that despite all of the praise I heap upon Calunio for his story and concept work and - oh how that dialogue sings! - I can never shake the fact that I've never considered Calunio to be strong at, well, gameplay. Until... now? I mean, based on the 2-3 hours of this game I've played, it's by far the most fun I've had playing a Calunio game when it comes to pure mechanics, and it's... somehow still backed up by Calunio's masterful storytelling abilities? And somehow his scene direction is more effective than ever? And this might be his LONGEST game yet? The very fact that one of the most promising RPG Maker games I can think of right now is being developed based on copyrighted characters and setting is somehow one of the most RPG Maker things I can think of. I really, really, fricking hope this game gets more players when the next demo comes out. I'd be really disappointed if it didn't, because this game absolutely. Fucks.


Thank you so much for the lovely words! <3
I'm really hyped for this game, and I'm confident it will deliver.
At this point I don't plan on releasing any further demos and I don't mind if the current demo is not played by many people. I like the idea that a huge game will come out of the blue. I know hype is good for marketing but, well... saving that for later, and focusing 110% on the game right now.
However, it's no understatement when I say making a game for so long with no one playing it (the current form, which is 3 or 4 times longer than the demo) is PAINFUL! But it will be worth it.
I see I am late to the party, lol. I played the demo and I think it's awesome. I love the comic book style to it and that it's frankly a game meant for adults. I also love tactical rpg's and I really enjoyed it. My only complaint is that calling Papa John caused it to crash, but, that is no big deal at all. I hope that it is fully finished, cause this is awesome!
author=FoxMulder24
I see I am late to the party, lol. I played the demo and I think it's awesome. I love the comic book style to it and that it's frankly a game meant for adults. I also love tactical rpg's and I really enjoyed it. My only complaint is that calling Papa John caused it to crash, but, that is no big deal at all. I hope that it is fully finished, cause this is awesome!


I'm surprised about the crash. I've probably fixed it, because nothing like that has come up in recent testings.
You're actually a bit early to the party. I'm releasing the complete game next week. I should have taken the demo down (doing it now). Hope you enjoyed the demo enough to give the full thing a shot!
Definitely! It seemed random, when I did it again it worked fine.
Just dropping by to congrat you for the featured game!

I tried your game, and well, it's going to be hard for me (I understood the fact it's better to recruit people) but the overall experience is really polished, and the amount of work does show.
I'm sure every people with a taste for tacticals or superheroes will enjoy this game. It may not be today or tomorrow, but it'll have its audience. :)
author=Gari
Just dropping by to congrat you for the featured game!

I tried your game, and well, it's going to be hard for me (I understood the fact it's better to recruit people) but the overall experience is really polished, and the amount of work does show.
I'm sure every people with a taste for tacticals or superheroes will enjoy this game. It may not be today or tomorrow, but it'll have its audience. :)


Thank you! Yeah, I know it's a tough game especially for those who are not used to SRPG. But I've noticed the game is a good teacher of itself, and players get much better very quickly, so that makes me happy too!
AtiyaTheSeeker
In all fairness, bird shrapnel isn't as deadly as wood shrapnel
5424
Congratulations on completing this! I'm really proud of you; it's been a while, but I am glad you stuck to your guns and completed Lonely League. Will give the finished game a proper look when I can.
author=AtiyaTheSeeker
Congratulations on completing this! I'm really proud of you; it's been a while, but I am glad you stuck to your guns and completed Lonely League. Will give the finished game a proper look when I can.


Thank you so much! That means a lot considering you were one of the very first testers and main supporters of the game! Please do let me know your thoughts if you ever get to play the finished thing!
hi how i can win the corners game?

also, sagat and hawkman really kicked my ass
author=orcaproductions
hi how i can win the corners game?

also, sagat and hawkman really kicked my ass


As a cards game, it depends a lot on luck. But there is a basic strategy.
Always aim for your highest or lowest card. If opponents are smiling, it means they got even an A or a K, so you might want to avoid risking repetition.

Sagat is very strong, but you can beat him adjusting difficulty.
The Hawkman fight is hard indeed. Did you use the aliens' Push skill to escape from him until help arrived?
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